For most of us the Catholic Church is a major part of our lives; we don't
realise it, but in the background, our faith is guiding, or even ruling, our
lives. Even those who leave the Faith, never quite leave it, and hopefully, can
be called back. So why is this Faith, the Faith of over a billion souls, so slow
to respond to some questions? We grow up knowing that God is love, and that we
must love our fellows. In so many ways we follow this. But to me it is so sad
that some who demonstrate love for fellow man are so slow at ever showing love
for fellow earth-dwellers - the animal. At the church where I worship,
occasionally a dog is seen accompanying its human - a well-behaved dog who makes
no noise and slides quietly under a pew. But I can guarantee that there will be
a devout RC who will make moan that 'church is no place for an animal'.

I have friends who work flat-out for the Church: flower arranging, preparing
food for socials, collecting for the missions; and for a hobby ... shooting! Not
clay-pigeon shooting, but killing real pheasants. Did God ever intend or design
his beautiful birds to be slaughtered for a hobby for humans, or wholesale, for
making a profit? I do not think so.

It is interesting to see diagrams of dogs, cats and rabbits; we, and birds
and larger animals, are so similar in our design. We all have kidneys in the
same sort of place. We have similar lungs and digestive tracts. Our similarity
is frightening. God, the Great Architect, saw a good design and used it over and
over again. And he made us all sentient; very similar in our feelings, the
animal and the human. So now I ask the Church to stand up and recognise this.

We are the Church which, through history, has called on holy men and women to
pray for us, to pray with us. We need to call on the saints. In heaven there are
holy patrons for many, many causes. Let us wake them up, and ask them to help in
the battle for the animal world

I will start with two very early saints. Firmin was born in AD 272, the son
of a senior Roman soldier. He was baptised by St Saturnin, the first bishop of
Toulouse, and himself became a bishop. Saturnin, for his refusal to sacrifice to
idols, was killed by pagans by having his feet tied to a bull which dragged him
about the town until the rope broke. The same fate was suffered by St Fermin,
who was killed at Pamplona. How is their martyrdom commemorated??By bull-running
and bull-fighting in Pamplona, the same sort of entertainment enjoyed by the
pagans who killed them 1800 years before. So, on each 25 September (St Fermin)
and 29 November (St Saturnin), let us remember these two priests who gave the
sacraments (just as our priests do today) and ask them to pray with us for an
end to barbaric practices.

I suppose that, to be a written-about saint, one has to be just that little
bit different. One such I shall call on is St Sithney (4 August), a
sixth-century Cornish monk (and nephew of St David of Wales). He is patron of
mad dogs, and I know a little about those, after nearly 40 years of adopting
neglected German Shepherd dogs! On 3 February, we celebrate Blaise: I often
appeal to him for help with a sore throat, but he is also a patron of sick
cattle.

Traveling in Europe, one can find small wayside shrines to St Roch (17
August). He is patron of many causes, including dog lovers. So why not, on 17
August, go to your nearest animal shelter and give them a donation, or a packet
of Bonio-and tell them why. We have a duty to our saints: we want their help,
but we must give them ours.

Today as I write this, it is the feast of St Marin de Porres: amongst many
good deeds, Martin had (in his sister's garden) a home for neglected dogs and
cats. Martin also had a great love for rats and mice. I think we should call on
him for all animals in laboratories.

By drawing attention to these saints on their feast days, by dedicating
Masses, by inserting appropriate Bidding Prayers and showing our fellow
church-goers the interest that these, and many other, saints have in animals, we
can raise awareness of the concern there is in heaven for them. After all, we
have a duty through prayer to help our animal co-dwellers.